Agenda

Back to Calendar Return

Regular Agenda Item 4. E.

Regular BOS Meeting

Meeting Date:	11/05/2019
Submitted For:	Jacque Sanders	Submitted By:	Sherry Grice, Management Associate
Department:	County Manager

Information

Request/Subject

Provide Comments Regarding Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for Resolution Copper Project and Land Exchange.

Background Information

Resolution Copper proposes developing an underground copper mine on unpatented mining claims on National Forest System (NFS) land near the town of Superior in Pinal County, Arizona, approximately 60 miles east of Phoenix. Resolution Copper is a limited liability company that is owned by Rio Tinto (55 percent) and BHP (45 percent). Rio Tinto is the managing member.

The portion of the Resolution Copper Mine deposit explored to date is located primarily on the Tonto National Forest and open to mineral entry under the General Mining Law of 1872. The copper deposit likely extends underneath an adjacent 760-acre section of NFS land known as the “Oak Flat Withdrawal Area.” The 760-acre Oak Flat Withdrawal Area was withdrawn from mineral entry in 1955 by Public Land Order 1229, which prevented Resolution Copper from conducting mineral exploration or other mining-related activities. Resolution Copper pursued a land exchange for more than 10 years to acquire lands northeast of the copper deposit. In December 2014, Congress authorized a land exchange pending completion of the environmental impact statement (EIS), as outlined in Section 3003 of the Carl Levin and Howard P. ‘Buck’ McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015 (NDAA). The exchange parcel to be conveyed to Resolution Copper includes not only the Oak Flat Withdrawal Area but also the NFS lands above which the copper deposit is located. This collective 2,422-acre tract of land is known as the “Oak Flat Federal Parcel.”

Evaluation

Information in chapter 3 of the DEIS describes the natural and human environment that may be affected by the proposed action and its alternatives and discloses the direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts that could occur as a result of implementation of the proposed action or alternatives. The effects of the legislated land exchange are also disclosed in the DEIS. Forest Service management regulations would no longer apply on 2,422 acres of the Oak Flat Federal Parcel transferred to Resolution Copper. Approximately 5,376 acres would transfer from private ownership to Federal ownership and regulations.

Conclusion

The Tonto National Forest has opened a comment period regarding the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Resolution Copper Project and Land Exchange. A Notice of Availability has been released alongside the DEIS in the Federal Register and begins a 90-day public comment period. The DEIS describes effects of the proposed Resolution Copper Project and offers five potential alternatives developed considering feedback from a 2016 scoping period. The Tonto National Forest is seeking comments from the public August 10, 2019 - November 7, 2019.

Recommendation

Staff recommends that the Board of Supervisors issue official comments regarding the DEIS for the Resolution Copper Project and Land Exchange.

Suggested Motion

Information/Discussion/Action to consider issuing official comments from the Board of Supervisors to the Tonto National Forest regarding the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Resolution Copper Project and Land Exchange. (Jacque Sanders)

Attachments
BOS Comments on DEIS Resolution Copper Project and Land Exchange
News Release - TNF Draft EIS for Resolution Copper Project & Land Exchange
DEIS Executive Summary - Resolution Copper and Land Exchange